The ultimate CBC insider exposes the controversies, successes and dead ends of his time at the top.

In 2004, CBC television had sunk to its lowest audience share in its history. That same year, Richard Stursberg, an avowed popularizer with a reputation for radical action, was hired to run English services. With incisive wit, Stursberg tells the story of the struggle that resulted -- a struggle that lasted for six turbulent and controversial years.

Shortly after Stursberg arrived, the corporation locked out its employees for two months. Four years later, he signed the most harmonious labour contract to date. He lost the television rights for the 2010 and 2012 Olympic Games. He won the biggest NHL contract in history. He had unprecedented ratings successes. He had terrible flops. He enjoyed the best radio, television and online ratings in CBC's history. He fought endless wars with the CBC president and board about the direction of the corporation and ultimately was dismissed.

This is the story of our most loved and reviled cultural institution during its most convulsive and far-reaching period of change. It is for those who think the CBC has lost its way, those who love where it is, and those who think it should not exist in the first place.

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Review

"To cut to the chase, the liveliest parts of The Tower of Babble, Richard Stursberg's anxiously awaited new book about his six turbulent years as head of CBC's English services, are the passages where he goes after his perceived enemies with a hatchet..." (Martin Levine Toronto Star 2012-04-11)

"Far from being a dry account of day-to-day business, this book provides an informative, and rarely flattering perspective of the confused inner workings of Canada's public broadcaster...Stursberg, despite being a first time writer, has a knack for story telling, and is able to effectively translate his experiences into a gripping and entertaining narrative...The Tower of Babble [is] a great pleasure to read and an excellent resource for anyone looking for further insight into the CBC." (Michaela Pontellini Vancouver Weekly 2012-04-23)

"Stursberg cooks up a book that will raise the blood pressure of his former employees and their many and well-spoken supporters across Canada...Lovers of a good battle story will be glad that he didn't [go gently]." (Duncan McMonagle Winnipeg Free Press 2012-04-28)

"...in an entertaining memoir, [Richard Stursberg] dishes out the inside story of his epic battles..." (Adrian Humphreys National Post 2012-04-28)

"Why read The Tower of Babble? It is a rare opportunity to see inside CBC management. It is an amazing look at one of the most controversial, confrontational characters to work in media in Canada. And it actually does provide many examples of what's wrong with our national broadcaster and the difficulties inherent in trying to keep it running." (Belinda Alzner The Canadian Journalism Project 2012-04-25)

"Stursberg's creativity rests in making things work. And that's the sense one gets from The Tower of Babble -- Stursberg really wanted the CBC to work, to be the best it believes itself to be, not because it should, but because Canadians needed it to be. So, while a tell-all -- the circumstances and atmosphere surrounding his end at CBC loom mysteriously over the book until the final chapter -- Stursberg doesn't come off vindictive. With his memoir, he's still trying to help save the CBC." (Mike Landry Telegraph-Journal 2012-05-05)

"Tower of Babble...fires several broadsides at the power brokers and 'chattering classes' who take a proprietary view of the public broadcaster, while at the same time providing highly readable accounts of his showdown with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman over the all important broadcast rights, his attempts to transform the CBC News department (which he describes in the book as 'Fort News'), and his continued attempts to make CBC relevant in a country where the majority of TV viewers prefer foreign programming." (Marketing Mag 2012-05-02)

"Stursberg, now a Toronto-based consultant, has written Tower of Babble, Sins, Secrets and Successes Inside the CBC, which spills beans on shenanigans he observed while in 'the job I had loved more than any other in my life.'" (Vancouver Sun 2012-05-14)

"By all accounts, Richard Stursberg is not one to mince words. Judging by his book, The Tower Of Babble: Sins, Secrets And Successes Inside the CBC, he's not one to hide from conflict or shrink from espousing unpopular views, either." (Eric Volmers Calgary Herald 2012-05-12)

"The Tower of Babble: Sins, Secrets and Successes Inside the CBC, is Stursberg's lively, one-sided account of his highly tempestuous time at the Mother Corp, which began with an employee lockout and ended with massive cutbacks due to the recession." (Nathan Whitlock Toronto Star 2012-05-14)

"...a breezy, insightful and unabashedly self-serving business-book-cum-memoir of his tempestuous tenure. He convincingly outlines just how difficult his job was, and succeeds in making you truly care about the CBC -- an impressive feat..." (Nik Sheehan Point of View 2012-10-03)

About the Author

RICHARD STURSBERG is the former head of CBC’s English services: television, online and radio. Before that, he was executive director of Telefilm Canada and achieved the largest share for Canadian movies at the domestic box office in history. He was also chair of the Canadian Television Fund (now the Canadian Media Fund), CEO of the satellite television company Star Choice, president of the Canadian Cable Television Association and Assistant Deputy Minister for Culture and Broadcasting. He lives in Toronto.

Most helpful customer reviews

The tower of Babble by Richard Stursburg is a exciting and interesting read about Stursburg's six years as president of English language services at the CBC.

I really liked this book for a number of reasons.

As a CBC consumer I found a lot of his stories touched me through my personal experience watching the CBC

Stursberg writes well and clearly. He doesn't suffer fools gladly. And that makes for an exciting read.

And the CBC continues to occupy a key place in Canadian culture and his role is worth reading about.

His account stretches across many areas of interest. For examples begins with is enough inauspicious start in 2005 which leads quickly into the CBC strike and cutbacks. He is particularly good at discribing the bysantine world of internal CBC politics and the protectorates that had grown up at the CBC.

For those students of media bias in particular is worth reading to sections: first his part about the extremely unfair coverage reporters gave him during the CBC strike, and secondly his efforts to convince the Harper conservative government that English CBC was no more biased than the other two main networks. )This did not go well)

Hockey fans will be fascinated to read about the bidding war the rights to hockey night Canada and how CBC was outbid by CTV for the Olympic games rights.

Perhaps the most striking part of this book for me was how much I continue to consume of the CBC in my household-for example the CBC show "Heartland" is a big hit in my household. We have purchased several seasons of its DVDs. It turns out heartland was a key part of Stursberg's plans to make the CBC more relevant.

I can't attest to the accuracy of this first-person account. It certainly seems as if Stursburg is an excellent self-promoter. But, with that in mind, I think that his audacity has made for agreat read.

Mr Stursberg's telling of his years (2004 - 2010) as head of CBC English services will be of interest to anyone who sees"public" broadcasting as important in Canadian society. His story illustrates very clearly the difficulties faced byanyone charged with deciding what the CBC should or can be doing, and how to do it. The first difficulty is that there seems to be no consensus among the Canadian public, politicians and the CBC board and executives as to what the purpose ofthe CBC is.

When Stursberg took on the job, the CBC audience, especially for English TV, had been decreasing for years to a pitifullevel. "Why should public money be spent on such a minority audience" was a fair question. Some CBC tradionalists wouldanswer "the mandate", "quality" and "a higher purpose", which Stursberg calls "drivel". His answer was to promote popularentertainment shows. "I have only one rule. Audiences matter." To the question "Why compete with the commercial stationsin producing light entertainment, which is already available in super abundance?" he answers that the popular shows on thecommercial channels are almost all American, because that's the cheapest way to make a profit. He did have significantsuccess in pushing the creation of Canadian shows, such as "Little Mosque on the Prairie" and several others, that gainedmuch larger audiences. This surely was a positive change. But he did also introduce "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune".

He felt that Radio 1 was doing well, having a substantial audience, mainly because commercial radio offered little besideslight music. But he did shake up news gathering and presentation on radio and TV.Read more ›

I was quite surprised when I heard about his book on the CBC program Sunday Morning and wondered about his motivation for publishing it. As a CBC employee in English Services, I was eager to read Richard Stursberg's account.

I can't attest to the accuracy, completeness and impartiality of the CBC/SRC historical passages, but don't have any reason to doubt them. These accounts are used to frame his own personal experiences and provide excellent background and context. Even though I work there now and know something about the organization's evolution, I found it very educational to learn how his striving to drive change related to past events.

While I used to watch Richard Stursberg lead our "town hall" meetings, I was impressed by his swagger and confidence. It's amusing in the book how he demonstrates he's fully aware that some people view him as pompous. It's interesting to consider how likeability relates to his drive to both define success and to then succeed.

There are many funny passages that you don't have to be a CBC "insider" to understand and enjoy; the book is very accessible. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who has strong feelings about CBC. Though it doesn't leave one hopeful about the organization's future, it provides an excellent snapshot of management struggles behind the scenes and how they link to the audience experience.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)

Amazon.com:
3 reviews

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful

Scores to SettleJune 17 2012

By
Klarity (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Kindle Edition
Verified Purchase

I have been a regular listener of CBC radio for years, as a well as an occasional viewer of CBC television, which is our Canadian "national public broadcast system". For as long as I have been listening and watching, and from what I can gather, well before that, there has been ongoing debate about the cost, purpose and yes, "Mandate" of the CBC. The last few years have been especially contentious, and so I was interested to hear what Richard Stursberg had to say. I had every reason to believe that it would not be a mild and cautious account, but was surprised by the venom on display. There was an unbelievable amount of self-justification and attacks on enemies high and low. Names are named, and revenge seems to be a primary goal here. It is kind of interesting to watch an ego like this lash out while trying to win over the reader's sympathy and the tone of the book reminds me of Nancy Reagan's seemingly angry and get-even memoir. I have not written an Amazon review before, but enjoy reading them. I decided it was time to step up and give some advice myself. If you work for the CBC, and know the players it may grip you, but this is a bitter book, and not worth a purchase.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Hmmmmm....Feb. 27 2013

By
Ron Holm
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Kindle Edition

I really got tired of being insulted by the end of this book. But at least I know who to blame for the decline of the CBC.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Fascinating Peek Inside the CBCSept. 6 2012

By
Peter M. Holle
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Kindle Edition
Verified Purchase

As a long time CBC radio fan, Stursberg's book provides an entertaining insiders' look into Canada's public broadcaster. I have watched the CBC up its game over the past several years and its clear to me that Stursberg was the driving force behind the place's rejuvenation, or better said modernization, against a backdrop of a rapidly changing media marketplace. One has to fret that his departure may lead Mother Corp back to the yore of tedious left wing predictability that made it so irrelevant to a great majority of Canadians. In which case, the place's future again slips toward jeopardy.